RMO withdrawn as diarrhoea unrelenting in Saidpur

The district health department called him back to the Civil Surgeon's office without any replacement at the hospital, official sources said yesterday.

Hossen Ali, 5, son of Shabul Hossen of Bakshipara village in the Ssadar upazila died of diarrhoea on Thursday, the sources said.

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With this the official death toll is now 39 and the unofficial toll is 51.

A total of 448 diarrhoea patients were admitted to the six upazila health complexes and to the Nilphamari Sadar Hospital in seven days ending on November 8.

More 756 took treatment at those hospitals during the period, according to the district health department control room.

Some of the doctors this correspondent talked to said the situation is not improving as people are taking unwholesome and uneatable food in the present near-famine situation.

The government has allotted 882 metric tonnes of rice for the district for November, to be distributed through 88,200 VGF (vulnerable group feeding).

But there are hundreds of allegation of corruption and misappropriation of VGF rice and of protest processions.

A tense situation was created in Baravita union in Kishoregang upazila as local people protested reported sale of two metric tonnes of rice in the black marker by a Union Parishad chairman allegedly in collaboration with local officials.

In Sonarai union, it was alleged that the UP chairman sold 400 out of the 700 VGF cards at Tk 60 each. A complaint was lodged to the UNO, but to no effect, local people said.

Such illegal practices are going on unabated while an additional secretary of the relief ministry is in the district to monitor the relief distribution.